Tributes are starting to pour in for Alex Higgins, who died today at the age of 61.
Among those remembering him are his fellow players.
Ronnie O’Sullivan said: “Alex Higgins was one of the real inspirations behind me getting into snooker. He is a true legend and should be forever remembered as being the finest ever snooker player.”
Higgins's compatriot and fellow former world champion Dennis Taylor commented: “I had so many terrific battles with Alex, particularly in Belfast. Towards the end it was sad but I prefer to remember him as he was when he first came on the scene.”
Willie Thorne said: “He made the game what it is today. I knew him well. He used to stay with me. My mother would do his ironing. It’s very sad news. Snooker fans will miss him greatly.”
Barry Hearn: "He was the major reason for snooker's popularity in the early days. He was controversial at times, but he always played the game in the right spirit. We will miss him – he was the original people's champion."
John Parrott: “We knew his health wasn’t great. When he played in the Legends in April he was very poorly. It’s really sad and he will be missed. You’ll never meet another human being like him. He was mercurial. One minute he was charming, intelligent and witty and the next he could turn and have a nasty side to him but he puts bums on seats. I used to tune in to Pot Black to watch him. I went to watch him in exhibitions, He was totally different. I’ve seen him play shots nobody else has ever played.”
Steve Davis: "To people in the game he was a constant source of argument, he was a rebel. But to the wider public he was a breath of fresh air that drew them in to the game.
"He was an inspiration to my generation to take the game up. I do not think his contribution to snooker can be underestimated. He was quite a fierce competitor, he lived and breathed the game, very much a fighter on the table."
8 comments:
barry got it spot on
he was the original peoples champion
the rest that came after him and played similar to him are not as naturally gifted as he was.
one of the true greats of the game
I met Alex Higgins and Cliff Thorburn in 1983 in Montreal Quebec Canada which Alex won the Match is was a great Exhibition of Snooker with both players playing at there best
HE will be sadly missed
God Bless you Alex cheers
LEONARD FROM MONTREAL QUEBEC CANADA
You did not need music,you did not need less reds or different coloured balls or any gimmicks when Alex played snooker.
It was always a full house. He was the Hurricane,the maverick and the gunslinger. The original snooker genius who single-handedly transformed snooker and players of today should be eternally grateful.
God bless you Alex and thank you for the sheer magic you brought to this wonderful game.A true sporting legend.
(Barry - surely we must have a tournament named after him? It's the least he deserves)
He hated the WSA though, it's nice to know he lived long enough to see all his enemies get fired.
uncalled for Betsy!
some of those fired have families and despite what you think of them and how they did their job, slagging them off while using alex as a vehicle isnt on imho
I'm pretty sure Higgins was delighted to see Barry Hearn take over. After all his years railing against the snooker establishment, sometimes seeming a bit lunatic in his wilder accusations, he has been in large part vindicated by recent events.
1.36
if you think the recent changes to snooker and those that run it were a replacement for those paramount to the matters alex had with the authority back then, then there is no hope for you.
ok, the ones just gone were a bit draconian, but they werent half as "bad" as the ones before them at the helm when alex was at his most high
RIP Alex
LEGENDARY UNPREDICTABILITY, AMAZING ABILITY. R.I.P. ALEX HURRICANE HIGGINS! X
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